Volleyball picks up first win of season
Melissa Osterloh had a season-high 18 kills to lead the Utah State volleyball team to their first victory of the season against No. 15 Purdue in five sets (26-24, 28-26, 12-25, 22-25, 15-10) Saturday at the 2008 Utah Classic in Salt Lake City.
Sophomore blocker Katie Astle recorded a career-high 10 blocks and senior outside hitter Kris Hymas had 11 kills and 10 digs in the match against Purdue. Junior outside hitter Jessalyn Payne added nine kills and hit .643. In addition to her 18 kills, Osterloh added six digs and five blocks for the Aggies.
Head coach Grayson DuBose said it felt good to win.
“That’s a really nice Purdue team,” he said. “They’re big, they’re physical, and we were able to serve well enough to keep them out of system.”
USU won the first two sets despite a combined hitting percentage of .069. Purdue came back to win the next two sets, pushing the match to a fifth set. The Aggies ended the match with a five-point victory, clinching their first win of the season. Although having a lower hitting percentage overall, USU was able to defeat Purdue by recording seven more service aces (10-3) and five more digs (65-60) in the match.
The Aggies began the tournament Friday evening, where they lost to Utah in three sets (25-21, 25-16, 25-23). Osterloh led USU with nine kills and five blocks, while Hymas added eight kills and nine digs.
Utah was led by Cinthia Silvia, who had 12 kills and 10 digs.
DuBose said the team was able to push Utah to the limit a little bit during the match. USU finished the match hitting .160 and recording 12 team blocks, while the Utes hit .272 and has eight team blocks. Utah had the advantage in digs, finishing with 43 digs while USU had 40.
After beating Purdue Saturday afternoon, the Aggies finished the tournament with a loss to Saint Louis in four sets (25-12, 22-25, 17-25, 24-26), leaving USU tied for third-place in the tournament. Sophomore libero Christine Morrill had 13 digs for Utah State, while freshman outside hitter Liz McArthur had a career-high 12 kills and 12 digs. Osterloh continued her high performance in the tournament by adding 11 kills, six digs and four blocks for the Aggies.
Saint Louis hit .326 while USU hit .174 in the match. Saint Louis also had two more service aces (5-3) while USU had two fewer service errors (11-9).
DuBose said the team was able to push Saint Louis, which beat No. 3 Stanford a week earlier.
“We did a nice job,” DuBose said of the tournament. “We blocked at a pretty high level, particularly against Purdue. We were able to take them out of system with our serving and with our defense.”
DuBose said the team feels good about the tournament. He said they scheduled a tough preseason, which has allowed the team to improve each match.
“I think we’re getting good at the right time,” he said. “Right as we start league play.”
DuBose said libero Christine Morrill had a great tournament, passing and digging “a ton of balls” over the weekend.
Melissa Osterloh was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 3.92 points, 3.17 kills, 1.25 digs and 1.17 blocks per game during the tournament.
To continue improving this season, DuBose said the team will continue to work on ball control.
“We want to be able to serve and receive at a high level,” he said. “Our offense is generally faster than other teams, so we have to be a little more accurate with our passing.”
The Aggies improved to 1-9 this season, and will return to action Tuesday evening against Utah Valley at the Spectrum.